The Opelousas courier., 1887-04-30
IN TYLER's TIME.
Interesting Talk or q Former
Presidents Son.
"reminiscences Of Senator Tom Benton
and John Randolph

vAS ~ VA 0AS 1&E
time takers at Washington, writes the
Cleveland Leader correspondent, is Gen.
John Tyler, the o Of the President.
Gen. Tyler says his father did notatalllike
Tom Benton, and that he considered him
both treacherous and dishonest. "When
Benton's Thirty Years View was first
published, . says Gen. Tyler, Judge
Halliburton asked my fatherif he had read
it. Ny father replied: I have not, sir,
and it is d matter of the utmost indffer-
ence to me what Benton says aboutmy-
self or about my administration Judge
Halliburton said: But you ought to read
the book, President Tyler = don't
care to read it. was my fathers reply.
Nevertheless, ! said Judge Halibuf-
ton, Z will bring the book to your room,
the second volume, which relates to your
administration, and lay it on your desk.
If you want to read it you can if not,
you can leave it alone.'
HE did SO. My father picked up the
book, and, putting mi finger on the
leaf where Benton began to write of the
Tyler Administration, he turned W.
leaf after leaf until he came to the point
where the administration of Polk began.
He then picked up the book, keeping
his fingers at the beginning and end of
the parts relating to him. He thus car
ried the book to Judge Halliburton, not
having read a line of 1t, and said, T
find, Judge, that Benton told the history
of five Administrations in this volume,
and that he has devoted more chan half
OF his space to mine. IL is enough for
me to know that he appreciated the inn
p~ortanee of il, and ! do not care to read
what he thinks about it. With that he
gave the book to Halliburton. If you
will look at Benton's Thirty Years.
View you viii find that its second
volume deals with the Administrations
from Martin Van Buren, to Pierce, and it
contains 78s pages; 4a8 Of these pages
are devoted to the Administration of
President Tyler
Gen. Tyler well remembers John Ram
dolph. When he was d boy his father
took him to q Virginia convention in
which John Randolph was sitting. He
remembers him as q tall, thin, gray
haired man with a shrill voice. He
tells me an interesting Renaissance of
his father with Randolph when Ran
dolph was in Congress and was living at
Georgetown. Said he: John Ran
dolph had had a discussion with d man
named Shelley, who was one of his coli
leagues, and who had been d shoemaker
inearly life. sheffey had made a speech
which excited Randolph's jealousy, and
Randolph, in replying to him, said that
shefey was out of his sphere, and by the
way of illustration told the story of the
sculptor Phidias. This sculptor, ; said
Randolph, had made d noted figure,
and, having placed it on the sidewalk,
secured d hiding place near by, where,
unobserved, he might hear the criticisms
Of those who passed upon his statue.
Among those who examined the marble
was shoemaker, and this man,
criticised the sandals and mutteredv
oyer to himself as to where the
were wrong. After he hau,
gone away, Phidias came forth and ex-
amined the points that the shoemaker
had objected to and found that his criti-
cism was correct. He renaoved the statue
to his studio and renedied the defects.
The next day Phidias again placed it
upon the street and the shoemaker again
stopped before il. He saw at once that
the defects be had noticed had GaIssl Rassss
F Fery sa'iioosoIishIy otheE points about the
statue Padiidiaas listened to him for q
time, and then came forth with Latin
phrase which means, "Let the shoe"
maker .stiektn his last And 80, con-
Guided Randolph, 4 say in regard to my
colleague
esThe laugh was then upon shefey,
who, hereupon arose and madeo such q
scathing speech against Randolph that It
made him really sick. He went TO his
house Id Georgetown and sent his negro,
Juba, for my father. When father Or.
rived be found Mr.. Randolph ID bed, and
was greeted with, III faint, shrill tones,
lam dying, Mr.. Tyler, dying. : shall
not outliye the night, and have sent fol
You to have you 10 take charge OF my
funeral. 1 am not poor, and Idoua
want Congress to bury me like they die
aBeau Blank mentioning the name d
. very fastidious Congressman who had
been buried at the expense Of the gov
eminent.
aFather told him that he did q thinl
he would die, and after q little talk go
his mind away from his grievances. al
intellect began 10 play. and IN 4 shoF
time. said my father, in talking to me 9
Il. the whole room seemed to be spark
1ing with intellectual jewels, In shol
lime Randolph broke entirely away fror
his dependency ordered himself dressed
and iii i moment later jumped upon h
!. horse and galloped % the capitol. Wit